While Greater Imphal breathed a sigh of relief as stagnant water level in residential areas finally started to plummet on Friday, 50-year-old Maibam Memcha Leima’s troubles were far from over as her family’s paddy lands remained submerged underwater in Nambol Awang Jiri Mamang Leikai under Konthoujam Assembly constituency.
Memcha’s concern is shared by hundreds of families residing in the area, whose lives depend on farming and paddy cultivation to make ends meet. Memcha is the primary breadwinner of her family. She and her husband have two children.
The receding water levels in Imphal town, which had been submerged underwater for nearly a week now, finally deluged new territories up south on Thursday. The areas include Mayang Imphal, Nambol, Wangoi and few more.
For farmers of Haorou Loukol and Lamphel Pal locally known as ‘Awang Pat’ (both are patches of paddy areas) at Nambol Awang Jiri, the flooding has turned into a two-pronged attack as their houses, properties and farmlands had been completely inundated.
The two paddy areas roughly cover over 200 ‘Pari’ (a local measuring unit).
The state government or any authorities has not released any data of flood affected paddy lands in the state nor assured to recuperate the losses till now.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh had said that there are 2,28,520 hectares of arable land under paddy cultivation in the state of which 1,07,630 hectares are in the hills and 1,20,890 hectares in the valley.
Speaking to Imphal Free Press, Memcha asserted that farmers in the area were devastated by the flood and added that they were worried what would happen if the flood ramped up.
“The area is a flood prone zone which has witnessed severe floods in the past as well. But this time the flooding is rampant and unpredictable,” she said.
She highlighted that most of the residents in the Nambol Awang Jiri Mamang Leikai were farmers by profession and depended heavily on farming for livelihood.
“Our farmlands of 2 ‘Sangam’ (local measuring units) are submerged. The farmers had started preparing their paddy fields for cultivation but it ended in vain; now, we have to start from scratch,” she said.
She noted that the Awang Jiri area was flooded due to overflow of the adjoining canal, which connects Kha Jiri and Awang Jiri, and the Nambol river. She pointed out that the water level in drainage and canals had started to rise since Tuesday but the flooding began on Thursday night.
As a result of the inundation, several families in Awang Jiri Mamang Leikai are now seeking refuge in the local primary school, club and community hall. All the residents have moved their livestocks to safer and drier locations.
Memcha further highlighted that the several farmers also had fish farms which are now completely submerged. The flood would be even more detrimental for them, she maintained.
She stated that paddy farming and fish farming were laborious investments which the farmers made to keep their families running.
“The Konthoujam MLA has visited the area but has not met any measures till now,” she said.
She appealed to state authorities to carve out special packages for flood affected farmers in the state. Memcha’s concern is not an isolated event and is shared by many farmers whose farmlands and paddy lands have been swept clean.
Large areas of paddy fields in the Nambol area have been impacted by the raging flood water and more are being submerged as this report is being filed.
